Came From Darkness, Redeemed In Light
by The Real Hebi
Summary: A young Naruto is rambunctious child who manages to get into all kinds of trouble. Unfortunately for him, his destiny is tied to the fate of the Shinobi world. And its not just because he has Uchiha in his name.
1. Chapter 1

**Came From Darkness, Redeemed In Light**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Summary**: **A young Naruto is rambunctious child who manages to get into all kinds of trouble. Unfortunately for him, his destiny is tied to the fate of the Shinobi world. And its not just because he has Uchiha in his name.**

**AN: See you all at the bottom. Enjoy!**

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><p><em><span><strong>HISTORY<strong>_

Uchiha Madara stood at a cliff that overlooked the settlement. Disgust was apparent on his pale face. The people went about there daily lives as if nothing was wrong with the world. Like the peace they had all so desired was already here. Fools.

Did they not see the dozens of other clans that were just on the border? The numerous tailed beasts that could just as easily crush this pathetic settlement? The oncoming natural disasters that were bound to hit at one point? A sneered formed on his face.

Of course they didn't. They had Hashirama. The legendary Senju with powers and prowess that matched and surpassed his own. He supposed he should be happy that they were friends again but since the treaty everything had gone down hill.

First he was instantly seen as a secondary power and thus weaker than Hashirama. For an Uchiha that just wouldn't work. Then there was his own clan. They too seemed to become complacent in this small time of peace. They saw him as a war hawk and refused to listen to him on many occasions.

It simply made the Uchiha fume with anger but he would never show it. He knew that to do so would be showing weakness and that wasn't allowed. He just couldn't stand this little 'Pipe Dream' that he had when he was a child. The only way to true and everlasting peace was to remove all threats.

And with his power he could very well do that. Sadly, even he didn't have enough Chakra to pull off killing everyone in the Elemental plains. He needed something that could bring everlasting peace. Something that no one would see coming.

Thus he had begun his research on the Sage of Six Paths. The evidence and information on him was scarce at best. But this man had defeated the strongest Tailed Beast in all of existence so surely he would have a fail safe if the beast ever arose again.

That fail safe is one that Madara had found several days ago. Sad part was that he could not read the text on it. When he had used his Sharingan to attempt and read it a bunch of random letters became visible. He supposed that maybe only the Sage could read it.

And that was pretty much what lead him to up here. He would come up here every so often to clear his thoughts and to think of his future. It used to be so clear for him. Just kill the Senju Clan. But now his future seemed so shrouded in mystery that he couldn't even begin to guess at his path in life.

"Uchiha Madara?" A melodious voice called out behind him. Madara was slightly surprised that this female was able to sneak up on him. He was even more surprised by how nice this voice sounded to him. Not overly feminine but still had a hint of sweetness. A voice that could survive the strongest of fights. A true woman.

"Who wants to know?" He voice held a certain power to it. Not one that someone that abused their power would have. No, this was more the voice of someone so strong that they couldn't even hide it if they wanted to.

"Uzumaki Mito." Madara scoffed. He knew of the woman. If he remembered correctly her and Hashirama were to be married once the village got settled enough for that sort of affair. It was truly a boon of a wedding. Konoha and Uzu would both gain insanely strong allies.

"Hashirama's bride." It wasn't a question. It was more of a gruff statement between the two. Regardless, Mito nodded in agreement. She was currently the result of her fledgling village of Uzushiogakure trying to form an alliance with the soon to be powerhouse of Konohagakure.

She couldn't really say that she was thrilled out it. After all, who would be excited to have their life and their fate decided for them? But she loved her village and she would do whatever she could to protect it. Even if that meant signing away her free will.

"Is there something you need?" His sharp voice pulled her out of her stream of thoughts. She humbly apologized for becoming distracted. Madara simply scoffed at her and called her weak for becoming distracted so easily. And if anyone knew anything about Uzumaki women, which Madara did not, they would know not to piss them off.

"Pardon me but I believe you are wrong." Mito said with rage seething through her polite tone. Madara barely acknowledged her with a slight turn of his head. This only served to infuriate her further. "You damn Uchiha are beyond self absorbed." Now Madara turned to glare at her with full force.

"How dare you speak ill of the-" He was cut off by a much colder voice.

"Oh how dare I? You are one to speak. You walk around the village as if it should bow down to you simply because you are gracing them with your presence. Your arrogance and pride in your name alone will never amount to anything if the person with the name doesn't deserve the respect." By now Madara's Sharingan had activated and was spinning with full fury.

"And that's another thing. You and your Clan believe so heavily in the power of your eyes that a lot of you fail to develop any real skill as Shinobi. So what if you could predict the opponent's movement. I bet half of the Uchiha that can use the Sharingan don't have the physical skill to dodge the attack anyway." Madara seethed though he couldn't say she was wrong.

Which actually brought up a rather good point. Numerous Uchiha have died because the relied on their eyes to do all the work for them. Because of this they would often neglect to actually train their bodies to be able to respond to what their eyes could see.

"A true Shinobi is one who works for his skill. He doesn't rely on his birthright to give him everything." And with that the Uzumaki woman turned on a heel and made her way away from the scene.

Madara turned back to the village with a sneer. Who the hell was this woman to insult him so causally and simply walk away? Who did she think she was? Some kind of heavenly sage or something of the sort? Even if she did have a point no one talked to the Uchiha that way.

No one.

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><p><strong>[Several Months Later]<strong>

As expected the construction of Konohagakure no Sato was going wonderfully. Hashirama had ensured that the place had more than enough wood for increased production. The Uchiha had helped out with heating and mixing materials for building. The Hyuuga had helped identify weak points in structures and helped repair them.

Hashirama had been rather busy with traveling around and bringing in new Clans to strengthen the already powerful Konoha. So far he had picked up the Nara Clan and the Akimichi Clan as they were already friends and agreed that if one went the other would as well.

Not to mention the current relationship with the Uzumaki was bringing its benefits as well. Being the excellent seal masters that they were they had helped create a barrier seal for the village that would alert the village to intruders. Of course it came with a key for those that would need it.

More and more Civilians and Shop owners started coming into Konoha. Thanks to the increased flow of money and people Konoha's economics was set up. And thanks to the rush of people it was doing rather well. Yes Konoha was beginning to look a lot like an actual village.

That left only two people in the village unaccounted for. Madara had his hand rather busy with a certain Red haired woman. Ever since that day the two had a few confrontations similar to the previous one. All of them ended with Madara feeling a growing knot of self suspicion when Mito just vanished.

Each time he would become more and more enraged. And yet every time he countered her words she would have a new batch of sage wisdom to bestow upon the Uchiha. And thus the cycle would repeat itself over and over.

And, as Fate would have it, the two eventually grew close from their numerous heart to hearts and truthfulness towards each other. Over the months the two eventually began to love each other as they came to understand each other. Madara was beginning to understand that hard work was needed to become stronger. Mito was beginning to understand that so people were just born to fight.

Needless to say that when Hashirama had found out, because being the elected Hokage came with its perks, he wasn't pleased. He was beyond pissed of and angry with his best friend. Rage filled his entire being when it came to this situation. To know that when he was out and about Madara was keeping his wife _Company_.

The very thought made his skin crawl though he supposed he couldn't really be mad at them in actuality. They were both lonely souls that, in some weird and miraculous way, had found peace and comfort in each others hearts.

It took Hashirama some time but he was pretty sure he could live with that. As painful as it might be everything still worked out in the end. The Uzumaki-Konoha relationship still came in to bloom and two lonely people would now be happy.

However what he couldn't deal with was when those two people decided that they would be persecuted in their own home. Especially when those two people, who were powerful in their own right, decided to up and leave. This was something that Konohagakure could not afford at the moment.

It became even worse when these two people were Uchiha Madara, the current head of the Uchiha clan and an amazingly strong Shinobi, and Uzumaki Mito, the current head of the Uzumaki and a fabulous seal master with almost no equal.

As Hokage his duty was to at least investigate what was going on and find out the reason. He had lost his best friend to darkness before and he would be damned if he let that happen again.

When he caught up to them they were already half way to Uzushiogakure. "Madara! Mito!" Hashirama called out feverishly. He had been working hard to catch up to them. The duo turned around with a frown.

"Turn around Hashirama." Madara said cryptically. The wood user looked confused for a moment. Mito decided this would be the time to let him know their plans. Maybe he would let them go willingly?

"Madara and I wish to leave the Village. We have been persecuted by the Uchiha Clan relentlessly as they see Madara's attachment to me to be a sign of weakness as I am not an Uchiha. I have made plans with my home land and my own Clan for us to be there and be safe from judgment. They understand and accept our position." Mito explained as calmly as she could. But Hashirama was not having it.

"Then why not come back so we can work this out?" He asked. It was a fair enough question to be sure. One Madara decided to put and end to.

"We both know that if you strain things with the Uchiha then it is a good chance they will leave. Them leaving may even cause your precious village to fold in on itself." Hashirama couldn't exactly argue with that.

He took his time to think and he looked around. A small creek, a few boulders, and some grass far away. Nothing out of the ordinary on one's way to Uzushiogakure. How on earth would he explain this to the village? If Madara alone left then he might be able to keep things together. But both of them leaving would cause a scene.

"Then what should I tell them?" Hashirama asked, in reference to his village. Madara and Mito shared a look before turning back to the first Hokage.

"Tell them the truth." They said in unison. Hashirama instantly shook his head.

"That won't work. They will see it as a weakness that I just let you both just leave. The Uchiha nor the Hyuuga will understand the reasoning behind it. This would cause unrest knowing that I willingly let you two escape. Some would say my friendship with the both of you blinded me. That would make me be seen as an unfit ruler. I have to do something." Hashirama said with a sigh. He truly didn't want to forcefully stop them but it was quickly becoming apparent that he would have no choice.

"Are you both sure I can't persuade you to stay?" Hashirama asked once more, his eyes full of regret and trepidation.

"I am sorry Hashirama but I cannot stay and allow Madara and myself to be treated with such disrespect. We have tried to talk it out with the other Clans and other figures of power. Every time we were turned away or insulted. I'm sorry but this is for the best." Hashirama looked to his feet when Mito spoke of their troubles.

"Then I am sorry." At that precise moment a large root busted from the ground and attempted to encircle them. Madara acted fast and summoned the upper half of his blue Susanoo, his Eternal Mangekyou blazing with fury. One hand of the chakra structure grabbed a hold of Mito while the other hand was placed on the ground and pushed the duo far away from the tree.

Once they landed Madara let the Susanoo fade away. "Stay here." He commanded, his tone left zero room for arguing. Mito figured this was some sort of symbolic fight for the two of them. She would wait it out but not for long. They needed to get moving before others showed up.

And so the battle of legends begun. Madara fought with a blazing fury that threatened to burn Hashirama down if he wasn't careful. The Shodai Hokage fought with such a centered calm that Madara knew if messed up he would die.

As the battle raged on the landscape around them began to change at a rapid pace. Soon a natural flowing river became a natural waterfall. The water sailed down the new cliff at a brisk pace. The two super powers traded blows all day and late into the night.

This is when their battle came to a close. Madara, having been so tired that he couldn't use his Sharingan, charged at a battered Hashirama. Hashirama charged towards Madara and received a vicious slash across the chest before turning to wood.

Madara earned himself a nice sword in the chest from the real Hashirama. "I really didn't want things to end this Madara. But I will not hesitate to defend my village from enemies both foreign," He pulled his blade out of his back and let Madara fall forward into the water. "And domestic."

Hashirama felt sadness fill his entire being. He really did not want to end the life of his best friend but he couldn't allow him to escape and possibly come back later to kill him. It was a tough choice but in the end it was best one as it protected the village best.

The Shodai took one more long look at his friend before hopping away and making his way back to Konohagakure. However, A few minutes after he left Mito hopped down to the fallen Madara. She allowed her hand to glow green and to heal his injuries. She wasn't the best at this but she could hold her own. She could only hope it would be enough.

"Relax my love. All will be better soon." Madara opened his eyes slightly and just in time to hear Mito tell him to be still. He closed his eyes and allowed himself to drift off in to a slumber. Mito stayed in one spot and focused all of her chakra in to the wound, hoping her chakra would hold and keep him alive long enough.

She stopped when she ran out of chakra. Picking him up she single handly carried him away from the valley and to their new home of Uzushiogakure.

Where their new life would begin.

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><p><strong>[With Hashirama]<strong>

It was just about dawn when the village leader returned to his greatest work. A truly beautiful marvel of love and justice. He was instantly greeted by several Clan Heads and a few more prominent Shinobi once he entered the gates.

"Ah Hashirama are you alright?" The current Hyuuga Clan heir asked. Hashirama gave him a smile and a thumbs up, despite the obvious wounds on his armor and body. The Hyuuga Head didn't exactly buy it but he would not question the strongest person in the village, no matter how weak he may seem at this moment.

"Of course I am." He spoke weakly. In truth he wasn't feeling so good but he needed to maintain an image for the Village. Something for the people to look up to and believe in. /The newly elected head of the Uchiha clan stepped forwarded.

"Good. Is the problem with the deserters solved then?" He asked in as emotionless as he could muster. He would not allow the Hyuuga to appear stronger in front of him or the Hokage. However the look that the Shodai gave him was one which he sorely wished he hadn't seen.

In the Hokage's eyes were full of pain and misery. The Uchiha Clan Head thought about the situation and frowned at the thought. He supposed that he could understand the pain. He had actually lost his soon-to-be wife and best friend all in one night. And in some weird way it was all his fault.

The Shodai stood to his full height and looked towards the now rising sun. A few tears escaped from his eyes as they rolled freely down his tan cheeks. The sky began to become painted with all sorts of colors and rays of light.

"Yes." Was all he managed to say. His tone stated that he simply wanted to be alone for a little bit. The two clan heads bowed before hopping away. Hashirama watched as some dark looking clouds began to make their way over to him and the village.

Soon a steady rain began to fall, reflecting the way he felt on the inside. He looked up towards the clouds and frowned. "That is what the 'Will of Fire' means. To defend your home and believe in yourself and teammates above everything. No matter what." He said to no one special before turning and walking back in to his village despite the empty feeling that now occupied his heart.

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><p><strong>[Konohagakure no Sato]<strong>

A man with a flowing white robe and blonde hair lay in the cool grass, a dribble of blood seeping from his mouth. In his right hand he held on to a small baby with hair much like his. In his left hand he held on to his Wife's hand with a slowly weakening grip.

A woman with stark red hair lay next to her Husband. She had eyes as black as midnight with a creamy tan skin. Her child shared the same eyes as hers. She too held on to her baby in the cool grass. She smiled weakly knowing that this would be the last time she would see her child ever.

"Oh poor Naruto." The mother spoke softly. One could hear the sadness soaking in her voice. The pain filled sorrow that held her soul.

"Relax Kushina, he will be with his other Clan Members." The blonde man smiled at his wife reassuringly. The woman now identified as Kushina frowned.

"Minato, I don't want him anywhere near Fugaku. That man is not stable." The blonde Minato nodded in agreement with his wife.

"Then what do you want us to do with him? I'm sure that there will be plenty of orphans after this attack." Kushina nearly started crying when she heard this. The thought of so many dead people tore at her heart.

"We could always send him to his Grandfather." Minato suggested with a shiver.

"Grandpa Madara?" Kushina asked curiously. Minato nodded in response and that got her thinking. If Naruto would be safe with anyone then it would be him. "That might work."

"At least he will be safe and can return to Konoha when he is ready." Minato said with a smile. Kushina smiled before giggling weakly. "What's so funny hm?"

"Oh nothing. I'm just remembering when you met Grandpa." Minato visibly paled more so than he already was.

"That's not funny. That man _is _scary." Minato shuddered, causing little baby Naruto to giggle softly.

"He wasn't that bad." Kushina said nonchalantly. Minato deadpanned at her.

"Ever get attacked by a blue chakra Samurai as tall as the Hokage Mountain?" Kushina giggled again.

"He only does that to the ones he likes." A question ran through her head. "How are we going to get him to Grandpa? We are both kinda low on time since we both used the seal." Minato frowned.

"We had to. I wasn't about the make Naruto suffer his whole life for that. And as for Grandpa uhh," He trailed off. It was a good question, one he didn't have an answer to.

"You need not worry about me." came an elderly voice from in front of them. Minato sat up slightly, grunting in pain as he did so, only to see Madara come out from the shadows. He held his cane in his hand and was being helped along by a white creature with a spiral face.

"Grandpa?!" Kushina asked exasperated. The old man gave her a small smile.

"Glad to see you remember me considering you haven't come around since you met this man." Kushina huffed and fell back on to the grass. Minato paled slightly when the man's Sharingan eyes came and focused on him.

"We need you to hang to Naruto for a few years." Minato said tiredly, his eyes beginning to flutter shut. Madara nodded and began to walk over to the baby. Naruto had grown quiet as Madara approached, almost as if the baby was just as excited to meet his Great Grandfather as the Old Man was to meet his Great Grandson.

"So this is him?" Madara said as he looked down at the small bundle of flesh. "He doesn't seem like much. And you said his name was Naruto?" He looked over to Minato to find the man had passed away. He looked over to Kushina to find that she too was gone.

"Zetsu, Carry the boy with us." The white spiral faced thing saluted before walking over and picking Naruto up. Together the three of them left to go back to their home in the underground.

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><p><strong>[<strong>**Eight**** Years Later]**

A slightly older looking Naruto popped one eye open. The rays of sunlight shot through the blinds of his room with practiced ease. The normally white room was blocked by the sight of a kid his age in blue and white. The boy stared at him with a slight smile.

"Wake up already. Class is in a few minutes." Said the boy with a tired tone to his voice. The boys had stayed up late to train and it just so happened that the boy hadn't gotten enough sleep.

"Damn it Sasuke. Why do you always wake up so early?" The boy named Sasuke simply sighed as he turned to leave, his job of waking Naruto up was done.

"I don't know but I don't like it. Now hurry up or we'll be late." Sasuke said as he shut the door to the room.

"Yes Kami forbid that the Uchiha Cousins are late!" Naruto yelled out. He could have sworn at that moment he heard Sasuke grunt. Deciding that he really couldn't afford to be late he whipped the blankets off of himself and got up to get dressed.

He dressed rather differently than his Uchiha cousins. In his mind Sasuke wore too much blue and white. It made him stick out. Think about it. Blue and white hiding in a green bush is bound to get him seen.

No, Naruto went for a much more subtle look. He wore a black high collared shirt with sleeves that went down to his elbows. He wore black pants made of the same material. The pants were straight and sharp just like his shirt. Of course he adorned the Uchiha fan on his back along with black Shinobi sandals.

'_Much better than Sasuke_' Naruto thought with a smile. Its not that Naruto didn't like his cousin, far from it actually. Sasuke and Naruto had hit it off really well when he had shown up about a year ago. Poor Sasuke was an emotional wreck when Naruto got there. Lucky for him the boy's cheerful attitude and promise to help Sasuke defeat Itachi had helped the boy open up and smile again.

Eventually Naruto made his way down stairs to see Sasuke eating a slice of Tomato causally while he waited. "About time you got down here." Naruto just huffed at his response.

"Yes well some us can actually sleep longer than five hours at a time." Naruto teased. Sasuke couldn't sleep longer than that because Itachi haunted his dreams almost every night. The only time he could sleep is when he worked himself in to the ground and passed out.

"Sure if your a lazy reject." Sasuke countered with a smirk. Naruto frowned. He couldn't help it. Most days he trained harder than anyone had ever seen. Its just when it came time to sleep Naruto would take full advantage and sleep as long as he could. Sasuke would always say it was his parents genes that made him like that.

Which to Naruto was a huge mystery. When Naruto had arrive in Konoha and the Uchiha compound he only knew the basics of life, his name, and some bits of history of Konoha. Other than that the past years of Naruto's life had been wiped from his mind.

The Yamanaka Clan had done a sweep through the boy's head and found that he truly had lost all of his memories other than the select few he already had. The poor boy didn't even remember how he got there. However, the village had quickly accepted him when they found out that he was an Uchiha and proved it with his blood.

"Ah whatever, no need to be an ass Sasuke." The boy in question frowned deeply at his cousin.

"Come on. We have to go." Naruto nodded and grabbed an apple on the way out the door.

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><p>The walk to the Academy was about the same as it always was. The people of the village would wave and smile at them. Sasuke and Naruto would be eating a tomato and an apple. The girls would swoon over the two. Naruto would smile at them as his golden hair and black eyes shimmered at them. Sasuke would just grunt and look away.<p>

"Sasuke I have a question for you." The boy swallowed his slice of tomato and looked to Naruto.

"What?" He asked cautiously. Naruto had always had a dangerous curiosity.

"Are you...gay?" Naruto asked and nearly broke in to a fit of laughter at Sasuke's face of horror.

"What the hell would make you think that?" Sasuke asked exasperated. Naruto put his hand on the back of his head and laced his fingers.

"Well whenever the girls wave at us you just grunt and walk away. Some of these women are beautiful." Sasuke scoffed lightly.

"You're eight. What do you know about women?"

"I know that if you don't like them you must like men right? Or you prefer to be alone." Naruto said with sage like wisdom.

"Sometimes I think you were dropped on your head. That's why you lost all your memory." Naruto frowned. Several tense minutes went by before Naruto began chuckling.

"What?" Sasuke inquired. Naruto's face turned in to a full blown smile.

"You never answered my question." Naruto gave Sasuke a cheeky grin.

"That's because the question is moronic and I refuse to lower myself to your level." Sasuke finished with a firm nod of his head.

"Oh I can't wait to tell the fan club about this!" Naruto shouted as he took off to the school. Sasuke became enraged at the threat and chased after his wayward cousin with haste.

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><p><strong>[The Academy]<strong>

Due to his head start, and numerous traps he had laid along the way, Naruto had arrived at the Academy before Sasuke had. He had plenty of time to tell the Uchiha fan club of his and Sasuke's little talk and about the results. He watched with fascination as their faces went from happy to mortified.

Needless to say that when Sasuke arrived at the Academy he wasn't instantly tended to. In fact he was avoided as if he had caught some kind of sickness. The only person actually willing to go near him at that point was Naruto. And even then some of the boys and girls were giving him weird looks.

Sasuke leaned over to whisper to Naruto. "You did this didn't you." The blonde boy gave him a smile and a thumbs up.

"Yep!" He whispered back. Sasuke let anger fill his being as he lunged on top of Naruto and began choking him.

"You damn idiot! I told you! I am not gay!" Sasuke hollered out. Naruto held his smile.

"Who is...the one...on top...of a guy?" Naruto squeezed out through tight lungs. Sasuke's cheeks turned red as he hopped off. Naruto gasped for air with a small smile on his face. Victory had been his for this round. Sasuke was embarrassed and the class was laughing up a storm.

"You all seem to be in a good mood." Their teacher, Umino Iruka, said with a smile. The rest of the class scrambled to their feet and in to their seats with practiced haste. Iruka couldn't help but to let a small chuckle escape his lips.

"Right. Now that you are all seated we may begin today's lesson on Konoha's History..." Iruka began his lecture. Naruto knew what was coming next as he often read in his spare time to keep his mind sharp. With that in mind he let his eyes shut and allowed his head to hit the desk. School bored him to tears.

**-0-0-0-**

A few good hours went by before Iruka noticed that Naruto was passed out. "Naruto wake up!" The teacher hollered out. Naruto sprung to life and looked around panicked. Sasuke snickered when he saw that Naruto realized he was still in class.

"Since you are smart enough to fall asleep and not feel the need to listen perhaps you can answer my questions." Naruto yawned and stretched.

"Sure, go for it." The class snickered at his causal response.

"Who is the Shodai Hokage?" Iruka asked.

"Senju Hashirama."

"Who did he form Konoha with?"

"Uchiha Madara." Iruka cursed under his breath. But he thought of a question that was well ahead of his lesson plans.

"Who was the Shodai's wife?"

"Uzumaki Mito." Naruto answered without hesitation. Iruka and the class, save Sasuke, couldn't stop their jaws from hitting the floor. Naruto smirked at his teacher before promptly passing back out. School was such a boring subject to him.

Before falling back to sleep Naruto thought. Those answers had come so easily to him. As if he had remembered them for his whole life. He didn't even know who Uzumaki Mito was. His mouth had just acted on its own accord and produced the proper answer.

It was probably nothing.

Iruka shook his head and smiled. He couldn't really be angry with the boy after all. He did answer every question without wasting a second. This more than showed his grasp on the current concept. Maybe just this once he would allow him to sleep.

"Naruto! Wake up!"

Then again maybe not.

* * *

><p><strong>[Uchiha Compound]<strong>

The boys returned to their Compound feeling a little bit more tired than usual. Today had been a Taijutsu kind of day. What made it worse was the fact that it was a tournament kind of event. Of course Sasuke and Naruto had fought all the way up to the top with little hassle.

And like any other Uchiha would do, they fought their hearts out against each other. Which was rather hard to do considering that both of their styles revolved around countering each others attacks. Still even their Taijutsu wasn't fully operational for without the Sharingan they could only do so much.

Still the two of them managed to bash each other in to unconsciousness thus ending the battle in a tie. After such both of them were sent home so that they could rest and recover for the next day of class. Not that either of them really looked forward to it.

Either way when they got home they each went off to go and shower and clean up. They relaxed as the hot water pelted their sweaty skin with heat. When they left the showers they went to their individual rooms to rest for a bit.

It seemed like such a simple thing to do. To go to a bed and rest. However resting was not so easy when a weird man like thing was laying on your best with a weird spiral thing on his face. Not to mention how happy and cheery it was upon seeing him.

"Master Naruto there you are!" The creature looked up to Naruto and began jumping around with joy. Naruto looked at the creature before slowly backing away from him. The white mass looked at him, "Where are you going Master Naruto?"

"AHH!" Naruto finally let out a scream as the creature put its face mere inches away from his face.

"AHH!" The white creature cried out and latched on to the ceiling with grace.

"Who are you?!" Naruto asked in an alarmed tone. The creature stopped screaming as it remembered its mission.

"Oh!" He said dropping from the ceiling. "I am Zetsu but Master can call me Swirl." Naruto nodded, relaxing slightly.

"And why are you here...Swirl." The white Zetsu saluted before leaning in close to whisper.

"My other Master wanted to see you." Naruto blinked at the statement. Other Master? Just who the hell did this damn thing belong to?

"Uhh who's that?" The white Zetsu danced around for a moment, wiggling his arms and bringing his knees high to his chest. Swirl stopped dancing after a few moments and leaned back in.

"Master Madara!" The creature declared proudly but quietly. "Master Madara wants to see you!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Well there you have it. Chapter one all done up and ready for your viewing pleasure. <strong>**Not quite so long for a first chapter but this is the perfect spot for me to stop it. ****First thing I want to make clear: This is not my main story and as such may not be updated every week. I will do my best to update this at least once a week. ****But between this and the other stories I have going it may be rough. Rest assured that 'The Cycle of Pain' will be updated at its regular pace.**

**Other that what did you all think? Did you all enjoy it? Was it trash? Lemme know by posting a review. See you all next update!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Came From Darkness, Redeemed In Light**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**AN: See ya'll at the bottom!**

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><p><em><span><strong>REMEMBER<strong>_

"Master Madara?" Naruto asked the strange creature. The swirl faced white creature nearly exploded with excitement at the mere mention of Madara's name. Naruto thought about blinding the creature and running away before something awful happened to him.

Sadly, he couldn't find any slots.

"Oh he's your gr- I mean a friend! A good friend!" Swirl bellowed out loudly and exuberantly.

"But I've never even met him. How could he be my friend? The only Madara I've even heard of was Uchiha Madara." He mused quietly. But there was no way that could be him right? Madara lived a long time ago so this couldn't be the same one.

"That's him." The creature said proudly with his thumb up. Naruto raised a brow in disbelief.

"But didn't Madara die at the Valley of the End?" The creature looked confused for a second, almost in disbelief. Not that Naruto could tell what the creature was feeling. The damn thing didn't even have a face for expressions.

"Funny story about that. You see-" Swirl was cut off by the sound of a hand smacking on the door.

"Naruto, you in there? I heard screaming and came to check to make sure you didn't cut your hand off or something." Naruto could have sworn he saw the Uchiha smirk at his own words. Naruto looked up to the creature who put a single finger to his mouth. Must not want him to know he is here.

"I'm fine but don't lie to me Sasuke. You just wanted to catch me changing didn't you?" Sasuke scoffed on the other side of the door. While Swirl covered up his nonexistent mouth to keep himself quiet. He held is breath to ensure he didn't bust out laughing.

"Whatever, I'll be at the training ground." He listened carefully as his foot steps tread out of the house. He heard the door open and close a moment later. He let out a held breath and leaned against the door.

"Now what were you going to say?" Swirl put a finger to his chin and his arm under it to support before snapping his fingers. The creature jumped up and down a few times before stopping mere inches away from Naruto.

"I was going to tell you but I think it would be best for Master to tell you!" Before Naruto could even react the creature lunged forward and clamped his whole body around his. A moment later the creature and Naruto turned in to nothing but a cloud of smoke.

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><p>When Naruto came to his senses he was forced to blink a few times. Currently, where ever he was, was pitch black darkness with no light anywhere. Well, at least none that Naruto could see. And normally he had pretty sharp eye sight.<p>

His mind drifted away from his eyes and to the white creature that brought him here. This 'Swirl' was also no where to be found. Perhaps it was him that brought Naruto here? The creature did seem a bit off and quite crazy.

He thought about the last thing his brain could find for his memory. The only thing he remembered was listening to Sasuke leave then a plume of smoke. Nothing else could be found in his memory bank. No running, no jutsu, nothing. Just one second he was home and the next he was here.

It was quite confusing for the young blonde haired boy. To just suddenly be, well, kidnapped out of his _own_ room. And by something which he had never met or seen before. He almost felt defeated by 'Swirl'. He was an Uchiha and they always needed to be on guard.

He mentally sighed to himself and attempted to sit up from whatever he was laying on. Much to his surprise, he was bound to something. That's when Naruto noticed that he was laying on a bed and blankets were covering him. Maybe he was still at home?

Then a thought hit him. What if he was trapped in a Genjutsu? What if that whole exchange with the Swirl was just an illusion meant to trick him. He cleared his mind and calmed himself down. The scrolls in the Uchiha library had knowledge on these things.

The first, and easiest, way to break it was to release a burst of chakra from your body. The chakra release would set his chakra straight and he would be free from this scene. So he set out to do just that. He stopped the flow of chakra all over his body and, all at once, released it in to the air.

And nothing happened. He was still stuck and the place was still pitch black. But he was in luck. There was a second way of breaking through such things. It was rather painful but he just wasn't strong enough to break this one with only chakra.

This was also mentioned in the scrolls of his family library. One had to inflict pain upon themselves in order to break the jutsu. Harmful to your body but great when the time to focus is small and limited. Naruto growled lowly in his head before sucking in his lip.

He was moments away from biting it when an elderly voice rang out to him. "You aren't in a Genjutsu, boy." Naruto froze upon hearing the voice. It was spoken with a tone of power and pride in which he had never felt before. Though something seemed oddly familiar about it.

So Naruto did the only thing he could do, seeing as how he was all tied down. "AH!" He screamed violently. The elderly man covered his ears with his wrinkled hand to block out the sound. Not that anyone could see that. The volume was just to much for him.

"Silence child! Your screaming is pointless. No one can hear you." That did nothing to slow down or stop Naruto's fright. In fact, the thought of not being able to be heard, scared him even more than it did before.

"AH!" He screamed even louder than before. Not that it would do any good, thanks to the elderly man informing him of his situation. Soon a white hand slammed down and clammed on to his mouth to silence his pointless screaming.

In a panic Naruto opened his eyes and looked up to see who's hand it was. A white swirling face came closer and in to his very limited view. Naruto slowly relaxed as he recognized the face but he couldn't drop his guard. The place was too damn dark for that.

As if responding to his mental command the room around him lit up with candle light. It wasn't the best light and hardly provided anything but it was bright enough for Naruto to see that he was in a bed. And that Swirl was next to him and some odd looking elderly man was sitting in a chair across from him.

Swirl slowly lifted its hand off Naruto's mouth and made a shushing noise with the other. Naruto nodded slowly and turned his head to the man in the chair. He had long flowing white hair and a single red eye and a cane in his left hand.

Then the realization dawned on Naruto. He nearly began crying after figuring it out. "Oh no! Am I dead?" The poor confused boy cried out before going limp in his bindings. "Wait! If I'm dead then that makes you the...the...Death God!"

Swirl clamped his hand down on his mouth before he could start screaming again. The 'Death God' shook his head slowly from side to side. It seemed that the boy hadn't changed in the slightest since they last met.

"You don't remember me?" His old and strained voice called out. Naruto ceased his squirming and eyed the man wearily. Normally remembering something or someone meant that the two had met before. Naruto never remembered this man.

"Gmhpy." The elderly man sighed in an irritated manner. Swirl realized his mistake and removed his hand from the boy. Naruto shot the thing an angry glare before returning to the older man.

"No, but I don't remember much other than what happened in the past year." The elderly man nodded before getting up and walking over to him slowly. Naruto's fear of the situation only grew with the closer he got. But he had to remain strong for his dead family.

That actually spurred the thought of Sasuke. He could understand that Sasuke would be angry with Itachi for destroying, well, everything. But there were times where Naruto wondered if Sasuke cared about anything other than revenge.

"Good, then everything worked according to plan." The elderly man mused to himself before nodding to himself. "My name is Uchiha Madara and you are Uchiha Naruto, My Great Grandson." The now named Madara finished with a small, almost unnoticed, smile on his face.

"I...what?" Naruto was beyond confused. _He _was the descendent of Madara. As in thee Uchiha Madara? "Me? But there's no way I could be!" He was completely baffled about this.

"Yes you are. Your mother was my Granddaughter." Naruto's mouth just hung open in pure shock and disbelief.

"You were my mother's Grandfather?" Madara shook his head in irritation.

"I thought I said that already." Naruto opened his mouth to respond but shut it once he realized he was right. Still, this new revelation was shocking to say the least. Who would have guessed that Naruto was the descendent of someone so strong.

"But...The history books said you died at the Valley of the End." Madara looked at though he may kill Naruto for simply bringing that up. He had never really felt killer intent in his life before but this. This was more than anything Naruto could handle.

The mere pressure alone was more than enough to drive him insane. He was sure that if these bindings were on his arms he may have tried to end his own life. This was just something Naruto could deal with for too long.

Lucky for him, Madara relented and calmed himself down. "No, I didn't die there. I lived and went to...well home. It was there your mother was born before she met your father and moved to Konoha. Me and my Wife stayed behind at home." Naruto nodded and wisely chose not to interrupt the man while he told his story. Madara inhaled a slow breath.

"My wife...my Partner was taken from home when the Kyuubi attacked. It took all I had to fend it off but nothing could stop it. It even broke free of my...special power. I had heard that she, my wife, was forced to have her cells taken from her body. I eventually got her back though. Funny as seeing how the Kyuubi attacked them anyway some years later." Naruto raised a brow as it seemed that he was waiting for Naruto to ask a question.

"So how was my mother born?" Madara sighed.

"When I rescued my Wife she insisted that we have a child to carry on our bloodline. Your mother was second result that union, with your mother's mother being the first. Though you are related to another person out there. A Senju that has her cells but I'm sure you'll meet her one day." Naruto nodded slowly. It made sense to him. Someone took his Great Grandmother's cells and put them in someone else. That someone passed those cells on to a Senju that was still alive today.

"The who took my Great Grandmother?" Madara looked as though he may tell Naruto but shook his head slowly.

"It is not your time to know who took her. When you are older and have the strength to avenge them then maybe." Naruto growled lowly.

"Then why tell me all of this!" Madara placed a hand on Naruto's forehead. His hand was ice cold to the touch but was rough as though he had been training for something. The blonde Uchiha looked up to see Madara's eye begin to spin with three black dots inside.

"Because I needed you to know some of the truth before I told you of my offer." Madara spoke with a cool passion to his voice. Something told Naruto that he may want to listen to what his Great Grandfather was going to say to him.

"I won't lie to you, my time is limited on this earth. But if you stay with me I will make you stronger than you could possibly imagine. You will know a strength that few people do but I will require that you use this strength to carry out a plan I have." Naruto was curious as to how he would get stronger but he figured that Madara had some method. He was sure of it.

"What plan?" The air around Naruto and Madara seemed to lighten up and almost seem bright for the first time. A small smile found its way on to the elderly skin of Madara.

"A plan to attain perfect peace. No more wars, no more fighting, no more hate of any kind. However, for the world to know this peace it must first embrace its greatest pain." Madara almost seemed gleeful at this explanation. Almost like he expected Naruto to join right away.

"So the greatest pain will lead to the perfect peace?" Madara nodded his head slowly. "Then count me out. I want no part of that. The world can learn peace without suffering for it first." Naruto spoke defiantly.

Madara was about to raise his hand to strike the boy when a thought entered his head. His eyes and his fire like passion reminded him so much of Kushina and Mito. Perhaps there was another way for him to be of help to the plan.

"Very well, I will let you go back home but before I go allow me to give you a two gifts. The first gift is happening right now. The next gift will show itself when you learn the truth for yourself and dedicate yourself to avenging your family." Naruto looked confused.

"The first gift is happening right now? What is it?" He asked curiously and semi-excitedly. Madara nodded slowly and pulled something out of his pocket. Naruto followed the item with his eyes till the light hit it. It was a mirror.

"Look at your reflection." Naruto did so and noticed that his eye color had changed. Instead of the black he normally had and was used to his eyes were blood red. But something wasn't quite right with this picture. His left eye had one tomoe in it while his right eye didn't have any.

"How come my left eye has one but my right doesn't?" Madara took his head off of his head and walked slowly back to his chair.

"Your body wasn't ready to awaken the Sharingan. I am sure the other will come soon enough if you train." Madara's voice seemed more tired than before. Which Naruto normally would have laughed at him but decided that wouldn't be fair to someone who just activated his Sharingan.

"Naruto, I want you to know that I am...proud of you and will be no matter what choice you make." Naruto was about to ask what he meant when Swirl dived _inside_ of his body and put him to sleep after wiping his memory clean of this incident. Swirl emerged a few moments later.

"But Master Madara, what about..." It leaned in to whisper like someone was listening. "Plan A?"

"He will be fine. I have enough faith in him to carry out the plan alone and hold up his end of the bargain. I have a feeling that Naruto will aid us unknowingly once he figures out the truth." Swirl nodded.

"What do you want me to do Master?" Madara let out a heavy aged sigh of his own.

"Take him home then return. I'll need you for something else." Swirl saluted and took off to do his assigned task. A moment later and Naruto was gone and Madara was left alone with nothing but his thoughts.

'_Make me proud Naruto_'

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><p>Naruto tossed and turned in his bed. He was having a dream that was running from some all consuming darkness that just wouldn't stop chasing him. Sadly for him, he tripped and the darkness managed to over take him with a swift ease.<p>

"AH!" He awoke with a scream. He looked towards the clock and noticed he had been asleep for several hours and it was late now. He rubbed his eyes and rolled out of his bed with a groan. He sleepily walked over to the bathroom to relieve himself.

Afterward he stopped to wash his hands. When he looked up from the sink and to the mirror he was forced to take a step back. Pure red eyes were looking back at him with interest and curiosity. A small smile crept on to his face.

"Cool!" He proclaimed loudly and darted down stairs. If he was correct in his memory before falling asleep then Sasuke was out and about in the training field. He couldn't wait to show him that he had unlocked the Sharingan and could begin using it.

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><p>Sure enough, Sasuke was at the training ground and was training his heart out against a straw dummy. The boy landed and flurry of combos that were rather interesting to watch. Even more so for Naruto since Sasuke seemed to move so much slower than before.<p>

"Sasuke!" He called out to the boy who was in mid run towards a dummy. The poor boy tripped and fell right on his face in the dirt. Naruto chuckled slightly at the sight of him tripping. Regardless he moved over to help the boy off the ground.

"What hell was that...for." He stopped when he looked up and in to Naruto's eyes. The blonde haired boy smirked victoriously at the sight of his shocked face. He crossed his arms over his chest and puffed it up to make it seem bigger.

"Looks like I win our little bet." Sasuke's mouth hung open for a moment. This was the fabled Sharingan of the clan Uchiha. To obtain such a thing was rare in its own right but to attain it at such a young age was the mark of a true Uchiha genius.

"But...how?" Sasuke questioned. Maybe if he learned how Naruto had gotten his then maybe his own would work too? Naruto thought about it and decided two Uchiha were better than one so he told him all about his forest dream and how he awoke to find it active.

"...and then I cam to find you and tell you. That's pretty much all that happened." Sasuke was in disbelief. A simply nightmare had forced Naruto to activate his Sharingan. He then looked a little closer and realized that the right eye held no tomoe in it.

"Hey, why does your left eye have one and your right eye doesn't?" He asked curiously. Naruto thought about it and shrugged.

"No clue really. It just sort of happened that way I guess." Sasuke closed his mouth and frowned. He was grumbling about how some lower class punk got the Sharingan first while he, and Uchiha elite, did not.

"Either way you're still no match for me." Naruto smirked. This is what he had been waiting on. He knew Sasuke would never take this laying down. Not with his pride on the line.

"Care to prove that then? Double or nothing on our current bet." Sasuke smirked, as did Naruto. They both believed that they had this victory in the bag.

"Deal." Sasuke spoke before dashing at Naruto with full speed. Funny thing was, to Naruto, it seemed that he moved a little slower than when they ran together. The blonde boy found it easy to dodge the punch that was aimed for his face.

Naruto countered with a shin kick to Sasuke's stomach. The raven haired Uchiha caught the offending leg and tossed Naruto off to the side. Naruto landed on his hands and spring boarded himself back up to a standing position.

He was loving every minute of his Sharingan and its advantages it brought. Granted things only moved slightly slower but it allowed for him to make slight enough adjustments so he could avoid unnecessary damage to his body. Truly his eyes were a blessing to his fighting abilities.

Naruto rushed Sasuke this time and threw a flurry of his own attacks. Sasuke, even without his Sharingan, was able to pretty much stand toe to toe with Naruto. However, since Naruto unlocked his Sharingan, the odds were in his corner.

Many of Naruto's strike were either dodged or blocked but slowly he got around his guard. A few punches landed on Sasuke's arms and shoulders. The boy grunted with each passing blow before push kicking Naruto off of him.

Naruto couldn't help but to glow at his success. See, Naruto wasn't like what the Uchiha would normally expect. He was not extremely gifted from the start or anything of the sort. He had to bust his back training every single day in order to get any better.

So seeing himself land any kind of hit against the more Genius like Sasuke did wonders for his morale and strength in himself. He dashed back quickly and swept Sasuke's legs out from under him. The boy landed with a harsh thud.

Naruto stood up and attempted to bring his heel down on the belly of Sasuke. The raven haired boy rolled out of the way in the nick of time to dodge the heel. Sasuke rolled to his feet and stared Naruto down with a heated glare.

While he stared Naruto down he didn't notice the slight change in the chakra of his body. He, an Uchiha, had forgotten the number one rule when fighting another Uchiha. Never look in to their eyes while the Sharingan was active.

Seemingly out of nowhere, a thunderous chop to the back of his neck was felt. The image of Naruto faded away in to a pile of dust just before Sasuke's vision went completely black. Naruto caught him before he could fall on to the ground and carried him inside and placed him on the couch.

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><p>Sasuke awoke with a start, suddenly remembering that he was in a fight with Naruto. The raven haired boy leaped up from the couch with a kunai in his hand. A moment later Naruto walked through the door with an apple and a tomato.<p>

"Woah, woah! Calm down, I'm not that scary." Naruto smirked when Sasuke relaxed and let the kunai drop to the table. He plopped back down on the couch with a heavy grunt. Naruto tossed him the tomato and sat in the chair across from him.

"What happened?" Sasuke asked, still a bit confused from the whole ordeal. He even used his kunai, a ninja tool, to cut the tomato in to little slices for him to eat. Naruto giggled quietly to himself as he replayed the events in his head.

"Well you see, I used my eyes to cast a small Genjutsu on you and when I felt it take hold I chopped you in the back of the next." He smiled victoriously at him when Sasuke's face went from confused to disappointed. Score one for the team of hard work.

"That's cheating." He said with disdain in his voice. Naruto shook his head from side to side.

"We never said using jutsu wasn't allowed. At any time you could have used your one jutsu." Sasuke opened his mouth to counter but his own words died in his mouth. Naruto was right, at any time he could have fired off a jutsu.

"Fine." He finally gave in. Naruto popped a big smile at him and took a hearty chunk out of his apple.

"Great! Remember I like eggs with breakfast." Sasuke groaned. Their bet was that the first one to unlock their Sharingan won. The loser had to cook breakfast for the other for a week. Of course, that was before a double or nothing bet.

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><p>So, as per the bet they made when they were little kids, Sasuke made Naruto eggs for breakfast for the next two weeks. It was a wonderful time to be one Uchiha Naruto. Even after rather brutal training sessions of the night he still was made breakfast.<p>

It certainly helped to improve his motivate him in the mornings for his classes. He was slightly more aware of the class but still would rather sleep through all his classes. Still he couldn't help but to ignore Iruka and sleep through his day.

Though he couldn't help but to marvel in the fact that he had the Sharingan. He made sure to show and tell everyone who asked about his Sharingan. He was all too proud to show it off to the world while Sasuke seethed in a silent rage about that fact.

He was supposed to be an Uchiha Elite. A Genius prodigy among other Genius people. Naruto, on the other hand, was not of such a high class member. He was a lower class Uchiha and yet he had achieved the Sharingan before him. Of course, he didn't know about Madara but, then again, neither did Naruto.

At least, not anymore.

The two Uchiha had even started a little game among themselves. The decided to make everything a game between them, a challenge of sorts. They were going to try and out due the other in everything. School, training, and Sharingan training.

They made all sorts of bets from more breakfast in the morning to forcing the other to skip out on training for a few days. Anything and everything was bet on. And surprisingly, they were tied in a score of 50 to 50.

The rest of that year passed by very quickly in this manner. Every single week there was another challenge and, of course, another punishment. The whole of Konoha had heard about these infamous bets and thought it was good for them to challenge each other consistently.

Funny thing about that was that Naruto was the more disliked of the two compared to Sasuke. For some reason or another, Naruto had not earned the public favor. It may have been the fact that Naruto didn't have a brother that was an S-ranked criminal.

Together the two of them pushed themselves to their height of their class. The two of them traded first place so many times it was scary. Iruka had long since stopped keeping track. As long as they did their studies properly then he didn't care.

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><p>The other three years passed in a very similar manner with the two brothers. They remained on the top of the class and beat down pretty much anyone in straight up fights. They were deadly accurate and worked in near perfect tandem when given group assignments.<p>

One might even say that they both deserved to be the rookie of the year and that they were perfect. However, there was one major downfall to them being so good. Only one of them would be rookie of the year.

When the year let out only one of them would be named rookie of the year. While the other would be in second place. This meant that they wouldn't be on the same team of Genin, thus making a decision tough. The head rookie was placed on a team with the dead last and smartest female ninja.

While second in place would be placed where ever they were needed depending on skill. Being an Uchiha meant that either of them could be placed with any team. Be it tracking, attacking, or capturing teams. The only choice left was which Uchiha was second best.

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><p>"So which one do you think is number one?" A boy with facial markings and a small white dog asked. Next to him was a small girl with pale eyes and a boy with glasses and a trench coat.<p>

"Hard...Hard to tell." The pale girl stammered out. The dog boy seemed to accept this answer from her.

"Yeah I agree. I mean two Uchiha are hard to rated against each other. I hope Sasuke isn't number one. Kid needs some humility."

"I am in agreement with you Kiba. Sasuke does seem to think very highly of himself but it is not unwarranted. He is very skilled. I also agree with Hinata. It is very difficult to predict whom may win this rookie of the year."

"Geez Shino, didn't know you had such an interest in this." Kiba smirked.

"A good Shinobi is always alert to potential threats. I suspected with your nose you may be more aware of that fact." Kiba and Akamaru growled lowly at the bug user. Shino merely adjusted his glasses.

"Idle threats are pointless Kiba."

"Please s-stop." Hinata stood between both males. The class was starting to look to the two males that were practically dripping tension. Luckily the two boys sat down with a small glare to each other but they let it slide.

Good thing too because the moment they stopped the Uchiha brothers walked in. Both of their faces were completely blank. This was their latest contest of will. To see who could remain straight faced through graduation.

Both of them sat down without a word and stared at the board. The class remained silent the moment they entered the room. Most of the people there knew they were not to be messed with in any capacity. They had no tolerance for such things.

Well, Sasuke didn't. Naruto loved to pull pranks and get in trouble.

A moment after the Uchiha brothers walked in Iruka followed suit. A big smile was plastered on his face. He set down his things and began to go on about some 'Will of Fire' speech and about how they were all adults now. Naruto seemed to enjoy it well enough. Filled him with a sense of pride to be among the leaf Shinobi.

Sasuke on the other hand saw as more of a pass. A pass to learn as much strength as he could to defeat Itachi. Permission to receive as much training and knowledge he could for his future goal. It was rather nice to feel appreciated for once.

"...Now then, I believe its time we get to the award of Rookie of the Year?" Iruka asked with a small smile adorning his tan face. Sasuke and Naruto glanced at each other before turning back to the board. Each of their eyes seemed to burrow in to the teacher with intensity.

"By a one point lead, decided by last weeks shuriken test, the winner is...Uchiha Sasuke!" And the fan club went wild like they had been named rookie or something. Naruto kept his face calm but mentally he groaned painfully. It figures he would be beaten by something so little. After all this time!

"Now, on to the teams. We will start with Team Seven. Uchiha Sasuke." Naruto wondered if they would be put on the same team. He doubted it but it couldn't hurt to give it a try right? "Akimichi Chouji." The boy instantly stopped eating his chips. He really had wanted to be with his friends but his grades weren't exactly the best. "And Haruno Sakura. Your Jonin Sensei is Hatake Kakashi."

And the pink haired girl let out a scream that was sure to break glass. Luckily the glass, and Naruto's ears, held up just fine against her wrath. In the back one Yamanaka Ino groaned loudly at being defeated in such a manner.

"Team Eight will consist of Hyuuga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba and Aburame Shino. Your Jonin Sensei will be Yuuhi Kurenai." All three members of the squad nodded before exchanging glances. Some of them more heated than the others but still they seemed alright with the idea.

"Team Nine is still in rotation. Team Ten will consist of Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru..." Again the blonde haired girl groaned about being stuck with the lazy person. Shikamaru seemed even less interested in the whole ordeal but kept an eye opened to see who the last addition was. "And Uchiha Naruto. Your Jonin Sensei will be Sarutobi Asuma."

Shikamaru allowed his open eye to shut as he drifted in to his own mind. Thoughts and stratagems revolving around the three of them began to form in his head. With some training they might be able to hold their own in a few years.

Ino on the other hand was now practically glowing with happiness. Sure she couldn't have Sasuke but she was also part of the Naruto fan club too. In truth she liked Naruto more than Sasuke for the reason that he at least smiled and talked to her. Sasuke just shut her down each time.

Naruto turned in his seat to look at his two teammates and smiled. Shikamaru wasn't that bad of a choice. Lazy sure but nonetheless extremely smart and resourceful. His vision drifted over to Ino who was waving and smiling at him. He couldn't help but to wave and smiled back.

"...And that's all the teams. You have one hour before your Sensei arrive so use this time to get to know your teammates. And, once more, congratulations." Iruka strode out of the room with a heft smile. Almost instantly the class began talking and chatting about almost everything that kids would talk about during a time like this.

Naruto for his part walked up the row steps to where Shikamaru was sitting and noticed Ino moving there too. The blonde Uchiha, for the life of him, couldn't figure out why Sasuke would shut girls out of his life. They had both agreed to help rebuild the Uchiha Clan and the only way to do that was through women right?

"I'd say let's go get lunch but I doubt Lazy boy here wants to go anywhere, right?" Shikamaru opened one eye lazily.

"That's pretty much right. Though you forgot about the part where you two insist on going and drag me out there anyway." Ino and Naruto grinned as they grabbed Shikamaru's arm and literally dragged him to an outside table.

This is where Naruto pulled out a few rice balls and handed them out. The three of them stayed mostly silent and ate in peace. They had been classmates for the past four years. Pretty sure they would know a good deal about eachother.

When the hour was up they went back inside and sat together. Ino was partially tempted to try her luck and lean her head against Naruto's shoulder but she stopped when she realized that he, and Shikamaru, had fallen asleep. Just her luck to be stuck with the heavy sleepers.

So Ino was forced to watch alone as the other teams all filled out until it was just Team Seven and Team Ten. Another knock on the door was heard and a scruffy looking man with a cigarette walked in through the door.

"Team Ten?" He called out, his voice deep and rough. "I'm your Jonin Sensei Sarutobi Asuma." Both Naruto and Shikamaru woke up instantly at the name and began to fill out the door with Asuma. Naruto turned around and spared a glance at Sasuke, who was still waiting, to give him a thumbs up and a smile.

The two Uchiha gave each other a thumbs up and rare smile was shared between them.

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><p><strong>AN: Yawn. And another done for your viewing pleasure. I thank you all for reading and I will catch you all later. Peace!<strong>


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